


So Close Yet So Far

by Wisconsin_Girl19



Category: Younger (TV)
Genre: Drama, F/M, Humor, Romance, TeamCharles, younger
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-16
Updated: 2017-08-30
Packaged: 2018-12-15 23:21:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,918
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11816328
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wisconsin_Girl19/pseuds/Wisconsin_Girl19
Summary: She did her best to stay calm but she wasn’t succeeding. Charles would be there. She figured that he would be but a part of her had hoped that he either wouldn’t come or that he’d be busy. She wasn’t sure if she could face him after all this time. Now it looked like she had to whether she wanted to or not. This was going to be the longest weekend of her life. For better or for worse.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So what does one do when they are obsessed with Younger and there are hardly any fanfics? Write one of course! Hope you enjoy.

“I am just so grateful that you are in my life, but for my girls’ sake I need to figure out where things stand with Pauline. I hope you understand.” His words kept running through her mind. She couldn’t help it. She told herself that she was okay with the way things ended. His motives were clear, he wanted what was best for his girls and she completely understood. She would have stayed with David—even with all the shit he put her through—if Caitlin was younger when she learned of his infidelity. Every time she thought about it, it became clear to her just how easily she and Charles connected and how much they truly understood each other.

And then the truth would hit her like a ton of bricks. She understood Charles but he didn’t understand her. He thought she was a carefree twenty something with so much life to live. He had no idea about her failed marriage or how truly desperate she was to provide for her daughter. No one at Empirical except Kelsey knew the truth and as far she knew that was still the case. 

She did her best to push her feelings aside and not think about the night where her and Charles almost “consummated and deflated” as Maggie would say. It usually worked until she would catch him staring at her out of the corner of her eye. Or worse she was the one doing the staring. She used to be able to compartmentalize when she was work but that was no longer the case. She would catch him deep in thought during a meeting and wonder what it would be like to kiss his jawline or how his small hints of stubble would feel as he kissed along her clavicle. Or even worse, she would remember her dream where they did up against his bookcase and not be able to think of anything else for the rest of the day. Would being with him be as good as she imagined? Would it be even better? She would never know for sure.  
One day she got caught off guard while lost in thought and immediately felt guilty afterwards. Pauline came into the office to meet with her—because her first editing assignment would of course be the thinly veiled tell-all about her boss’ marriage—but this time she also had Bianca and Nicole in tow. Pauline said it was so the girls could see where their father worked but Liza couldn’t help but wonder if there was something else behind it. Liza did her best to put on a happy face and put any jealous thoughts she had behind her but the longer it took to publish Pauline’s book, the harder it became. 

That was what led her toward making one of the hardest decisions of her life. She left Empirical and almost left the publishing industry for good. Maggie was the one who told her to look for another editing job. She had the experience now, no one would turn her away but Liza still felt unsure about it. The idea of working anywhere but Empirical made her feel guilty and she was tired of lying. In order to stay in the publishing world, she would have to keep her secret and she was ready for that part of her life to finally be over.  
And so it was. She kept in contact with Kelsey and when they hung out they hardly ever talked about work. Instead they used the time to catch up. They learned very quickly that they missed out on a lot when they didn’t see each other every day. It was during one their catch-up sessions that Liza learned about Kelsey’s new boyfriend and that Kelsey learned the real reason why Liza and Josh broke up. Liza hated to admit it but she had fallen hard for Charles and he always was way more than a scapegoat from her relationship with Josh. Even though she hated to admit it, Charles was the one who got away. She had tried dating others and every single relationship had gone absolutely nowhere. She could never find the spark that she had with Josh or the strong connection that she had with Charles. Both Maggie and Kelsey said that she was overthinking everything but she didn’t care. She didn’t want to have a fling, she wanted something real. She had spent half of her life settling and she was going to make sure that never happened again.

“Liza? Are you okay?” Jay asked shaking her out of her thoughts, “You look distracted.”

She nodded and then replied, “Yeah I’m fine. I guess. I’m just a little preoccupied thinking about this weekend.”

“Awe yes the wedding. It sounds like it’s going to be the event of the season. I bet you’ll have fun.”

She did her best to keep smiling as she replied, “Yeah I hope so. Unless Kelsey turns into a total bridezilla. It wouldn’t surprise me.”

Jay laughed as he turned in his chair, “You know what? This can wait until Monday. Why don’t you take the rest of the day off? That way you can beat the traffic.”

“Are you sure?” she wondered. 

“Of course it’s not every day one of your best friends gets married. Go have fun.”

Liza didn’t even question it she just smiled and thanked him as she made her way to her office. She had worked for Jay for a little over two years and had quickly become a vital member of his team. She started as a ghostwriter and then made her way to editor. She was grateful for the opportunity and so was Jay. He even told her on multiple occasions that she had arrived at just the right moment. The new imprint wasn’t doing very well and they desperately needed her expertise. Even though she was no longer lying about her age, she still had an idea of what millennials would want to read. Because of that she found herself offering her input on many different occasions.

Her time working with Jay was very beneficial. The few novels she had ghost written had sold very well and one even made it to the best seller list in record time. She eventually tried her hand at writing a book herself. A memoir actually. It was something that she never saw herself doing but what started off as a hobby had turned into something she felt needed to be out in the public. And so once she was ready, she sent it off. She figured it was the perfect book for the ever-growing Millennial to publish. She just had one request: publish it anonymously. She didn’t need her secret being exposed to the whole world but she had learned a lot from time as a 26 year old and she wanted to share it.

She grabbed her stuff off her desk and glanced at her phone. She expected to see messages from Caitlin and Maggie. But she was surprised when she saw a missed call from the expectant bride-to-be. Lauren had advised her to avoid all forms of technology and to have her maid-of-honor-Lauren-be in charge of contacting people. Kelsey had surprisingly agreed and Liza wasn’t supposed to see or hear from her until she arrived at the Hamptons rental house that evening. Whatever it was it must have been major. She made her way to the elevator and made sure that she was alone before she dialed the all-too familiar Empirical number. 

“Kelsey Peters’ office,” she heard an unfamiliar voice say.

“Hi is Kelsey still there?” she asked doing her best to sound like the peppy millennial she used to be.

“No. She didn’t come in today and now she’s off for two weeks,” the bored voice said, “Please hold.”

The other end started playing some random song with a trumpet as Liza became very confused. Why would she have to hold if Kelsey wasn’t there? Who would go to such extremes just to talk to her?

“Hello Liza,” she heard Diana say matter-of-factly.

“Hi Diana. How are you?” she replied doing her best to make small talk as she left the McMillian building and started to hail a cab.

She heard Diana huff on the other end before answering, “How do you think I am? Kelsey gets married in two days and I have no idea what to get her. I can’t very well get my assistant to do it because she can’t even get my coffee right and she’s been here for a month already. Really, how long does it take?”

“Do you need some ideas?” Liza asked while doing her best not to laugh. She hadn’t talked to Diana in almost three years and here she was expecting her to help with a snap of her fingers. 

“What do you think this is, a courtesy call? Of course I need ideas otherwise I’m just going to go with Richard’s idea and give them a certificate for counseling. God knows they’ll need it at one point or another.” 

Liza cringed as she stepped into the cab that pulled up in front of her. She quickly told the driver her destination and then turned her attention back to Diana. “Well Kelsey and Scott love to travel, you could get them a luggage set. Or you get them something for their new loft. Oh and they’re always spoiling their dog, I’m sure they’d love a BarkBox subscription.”

“Their dog?” Diana questioned in outrage, “I knew that you quit Empirical to pursue other opportunities I didn’t know that you had also gone insane.”

“How about I send you a link to their wedding website instead. You can access their registry from there.”

“I guess that will work. But I was hoping that you would have better ideas than that ridiculous wedding registry. It must have been put together by that silly redhead Kelsey keeps running around with. I’ll just give them the gift certificate and they’ll thank me later for it.”

“Diana, I’m sure we can come up with something better.”

“No it’s settled. I’ve made up my mind. I’m assuming you’ll be at the wedding?”

Liza took a deep breath and then replied, “Yes I will be.”

“Well then I will see you there. As much I’d love to have a weekend getaway with Richard, Charles insists that we go and support our coworker.”  
“If you don’t want to go…” she started.

Diana quickly interrupted her and said, “I have to go Liza.” The next thing Liza heard was a click and then the call was over. She did her best to stay calm but she wasn’t succeeding. Charles would be there. She figured that he would be but a part of her had hoped that he either wouldn’t come or that he’d be busy. She wasn’t sure if she could face him after all this time. Now it looked like she had to whether she wanted to or not. This was going to be the longest weekend of her life. For better or for worse.


	2. Chapter 2

“So, do you think you’ll find a hot date at the wedding?” she heard Maggie ask as she entered their apartment.

“Maybe. Honestly, I’m still surprised that I’m invited,” Caitlin replied before she noticed Liza and smiled, “Mom!”

All of Liza’s worries seemed to disappear as she saw her grown daughter walk over to give her a hug. It was moments like these that she lived for. Caitlin was the most important thing in her life and always would be. Even though she was done with school and living on her own, Liza knew that she would go back to lying in a heartbeat if Caitlin was ever in trouble. “Hey sweetie! I thought we were picking you up on the way?”

Caitlin rolled her eyes. Why her mother still called her a pet name she had no idea, she thought it was childish and silly but she wasn’t about to say any of that out loud. Instead she laughed and then replied, “And I thought you had to work all day?” she quickly gasped, “Mom! Are you playing hooky?”

This time it was Liza’s turn to roll her eyes. “No. Jay told me I could take the rest of the day off.”

“Awe that was sweet of him,” Caitlin added and Liza couldn’t help but pick up on her inquisitive tone. Ever since things ended with Josh, Caitlin always seemed to want to know about her love life or lack thereof. And whenever she showed interest, Liza was reminded yet again of what she was missing out on. As much as she told herself that she was happy with work and hanging out with friends, she knew in her heart that it wasn’t enough.

“Now now, your mother is the picture perfect definition of professionalism. She and Jay are just friends, trust me,” Maggie interjected. “Now don’t you have some more packing to do?”

“What?” Liza wondered.

Caitlin winced as she replied, “Yeah I kind of over packed. That’s why I’m here. I was hoping Maggie could help me make it all fit.”

“Or tell you what can stay and what should go,” Maggie added as she turned towards Liza, “Your daughter here probably has 20 different outfits with her for a three day trip.”

Liza laughed as she replied, “Well you definitely got that from me. You should have seen how many clothes I wanted to take with me on my honeymoon.”

“Ugh don’t remind me! That still gives me nightmares! Two suitcases for a five day stay in a bed and breakfast in Vermont. You have got to be kidding me!”

Liza couldn’t help but laugh at her best friend’s banter. Maggie could always make her feel better and thank God for that. That and Maggie was someone she always went to for advice and she had a feeling she’d be taking advantage of that during the very busy wedding weekend. “Well then you better help this one,” she pointed at Caitlin, “before she turns into a lost cause like me.”

“Yes I definitely should. Let’s go.” Caitlin started walking toward Liza’s room before she turned around and asked, “Do you want to help Mom?”

“No it’s okay. I’ll get some work done while I’m waiting,” she answered even though she knew it was lie. She was not in the right mindset to work but she needed something to distract her. All this wedding talk did was make her think of Charles and how their eventual run-in would play out. Would Pauline and the girls be with him? Would he even speak to her after the way she left Empirical? Would she even be able to continue lying to him? Or would she just break down and tell him the truth? There was too much to digest and she needed to get her head back on straight while she had the chance.

She could hear Maggie and Caitlin giggling in the other room. Probably talking about the wedding and what crazy stories Lauren would tell during her maid-of-honor speech. It still surprised her how much things had changed in just a short amount of time. Caitlin and Kelsey had met a few times and they had really hit it off. That lead to a blossoming friendship between the two and Caitlin even joined them for Girl’s Night on a few occasions. Liza never thought that her two worlds would collide and she was grateful that they did. Things very easily could have turned out differently.

She sat down on the couch and pulled out the manuscript that she had been working on. It was a great story but the prose needed drastic improvements. She was only halfway through making notes on it and she could already tell it was going to be a long road to getting published. She had a feeling that if they wanted to make it a bestseller they would need a ghostwriter. She couldn’t see this particular author—a middle aged man who thought that he knew everything—spending his waking hours rewriting numerous sections of the novel in order to make onto the list. She wanted to let Jay know so he could be prepared for whatever happened once the author got all of her critiques. She meant to tell him that afternoon but never got around to it.

Liza flipped through the manuscript until she came to the page that she was looking for and started to make notes and suggestions for rewrites. She figured it would probably be best to finish editing it before she brought the idea up again, that way she would have plenty of proof with her when she did. As she was reading through the material she could feel her focus slipping. Instead of looking for plot holes and incomplete sentences she found herself thinking about an all too familiar pair of blue eyes and the when she saw them for the last time.

_She took a deep breath before she knocked on his door. Something that was so menial before now seemed to take more effort than climbing to the top of the Statue of Liberty. Ever since Pauline had reentered the picture, she didn’t feel at ease when she and Charles were alone together. She wasn’t sure if she could trust herself around him. All he would have to do was laugh at one of her jokes or seem worried about her for her stomach to immediately fill with butterflies. And every time that happened, it reminded her of what she was missing out on and what she could never have._

_“Come in,” he said._

_“You wanted to see me?” she asked, trying her best to sound like an excited employee rather than the nervous wreck she actually was._

_“I did,” Charles added as he motioned for her to close the door and then sit down across from him, “How are the rewrites on Pauline’s book coming?”_

_She did her best not to let her confusion show. Shouldn’t he know? “They’re going good. Really good actually. It’s coming together quite nicely. I actually just gave Kelsey the newest draft. Did you want to see it? I can go grab it.”_

_S_ _he started to get up as Charles said, “No, no that’s fine. But I did want to ask you something else.”_

_“Okay,” she said as she sat back down. “What is it?”_

_Charles glanced down at his desk and took a deep breath. Which made Liza feel more at ease. At least she wasn’t the only one who felt awkward. They had hardly spent any ti_ _me alone together since Charles decided to give Pauline another chance. She did her best to keep her distance and she was sure that he was doing the same. “Pauline seems to be really stressed about the edits she has to make and I guess I’m wondering if… you’re being harder on her than you need to be. Because of….well all that’s happened.”_

_“No I would never do that,” she quickly replied._

_Charles nodded, “I figured but I hope you know why I had to ask.”_

_Liza looked down at her lab and did her best to keep herself together before she finally replied, “Pauline is very lovely and she is an amazing writer. I’m sorry if I’ve been the cause for all her stress. I definitely didn’t mean to be.”_

_“No I’m sorry,” Charles started, “I just assumed that was the case. I should have known...It’s just been difficult lately.” He glanced up at her and Liza could feel her stomach filling up with butterflies. Was he trying to tell her that things with Pauline weren’t working out?_

_She pushed the thoughts to the back of her mind before she said, “I’m sure it is with Pauline’s book about to come out. Things will settle down eventually.”_ _He smiled at her and she couldn’t help but smile back. “What?”_

_“Nothing,” he replied, “I truly am sorry.”_

_Without realizing what she was doing she reached out and placed her hand on top of his, “You don’t have to keep apologizing. You had to make sure that I wasn’t being unprofessional, I get it.”_

_Charles let out a little laugh as he started to stroke the top of her hand with his thumb. He had to be doing it absentmindedly, there was no other explanation. At least that’s what she told herself in order to keep the butterflies at bay. “Thank you for understanding. Other people your age wouldn’t handle this type of situation so well.” She nodded in agreement but didn’t say anything. She wasn’t sure she’d able to get any words out anyway. Her hand was tingling from his touch and she was desperately craving more contact but she knew that it couldn’t go any further than this. She’d never forgive herself if it did._

_“Charles,” Diana called as she knocked on his door. Liza quickly pulled her hand away and stood up as Diana opened the door. “Oh Liza there you are. I need you to go pick up some take out, I told Richard that I would cook tonight. So choose someplace nice and traditional not one of those strange fusion places you and Kelsey keep going to. Charles we need go over the roll out for the new Belinda LaCroix novel.”_

_“Well then I will leave you to it,” Liza said as she turned towards Charles, “I will tell Kelsey to give you Pauline’s newest draft once she’s finished reading it.”_

_Charles shook his head, “No that’s fine. I’m sure it’s great. I trust you.” He glanced at her and she could see it in his eyes. He was trying to return things to how they were before. She would like for that to happen as well but she knew that it never would. She turned back towards Diana, who looked at her impatiently, and then quickly left the office. As soon as she was a safe distance away she let out the breath she had been holding in ever since Charles started stroking her hand, which was still tingling and that made a sudden rush of guilt melt over her. She absolutely loved her job but she wasn’t sure if she could continue on this way. She grabbed her phone as she waited for the elevator to arrive and quickly dialed her best friend’s number._

_“Maggie,” she said once she heard the other end pick up, “I need your help. I don’t know what to do.”_

“Hey Mom,” she heard Caitlin say as her memory started to dissolve. “Ready to go?” Liza nodded as she closed the long-forgotten about manuscript and put it back in her purse.

“Yeah, I just need to grab my bag.” Maggie shook her head as she handed her the large duffle that had been packed the night before, “No need. I got it for you. Come on girls, let’s go have some fun!” Liza nodded even though she wasn’t sure how much fun she would be having. The only thing she knew for certain was that it was going to be a very eventful weekend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys enjoyed it! Stay tuned for more!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally finished Chapter 3! Hope you enjoy!

                The drive from Brooklyn to the Hamptons turned out to be just the distraction Liza needed. Caitlin spent most of the drive telling her and Maggie about her new job and how she was adjusting to adult life. Maggie also chose that time to inform them that she had a new gallery interested in her and was going to have a new show soon. Liza was so happy for her friend and eagerly pressed for more. Maggie gladly told her the whole story and Liza was so captivated by the news that the two hour drive passed by very quickly. Then before she knew it, they were parked outside of the beautiful beach front rental house that they got to call home for the weekend. “And here we are,” Maggie said as she turned the ignition off.

                “Wow this place is gorgeous!” Caitlin exclaimed.

                Liza nodded as she grabbed her purse and added, “Yeah this is apparently the same house they stayed at when Scott proposed. Kelsey didn’t think they’d be able to get it for the ceremony but Lauren wouldn’t take no for an answer.”

                Maggie laughed, “Now that doesn’t surprise me. What Lauren wants, Lauren gets.” All three of them laughed as they got out of the car and started to get their luggage.

                “No, no, no, no. What do you think you’re doing?” they heard Lauren ask, causing them all to look at the fiery redhead, “Stop what you’re doing right now. We have valets for that, they will take care of it. Now come on, you’re late.”

                “Late for what?” Caitlin asked Liza, doing her best to make sure Lauren didn’t hear her.

                Liza shrugged, “Who knows. Lauren is always up to something.” They quickly made their way inside and to no one’s surprise, they found themselves in the middle of a party. A low key and casual one, but it was definitely still a party. “Yeah I should have seen this coming.”

                “Liza! You finally made it!” she heard Kelsey say as the bubbly bride-to-be ran towards her. She gave Liza a hug and then turned her attention to Maggie and Caitlin. “Thank you guys so much for coming. You have no idea how much this means to me!”

                “No problem. Thanks for inviting us,” Maggie replied while Caitlin smiled graciously and Kelsey enveloped both of them in a hug.

                “Okay boys the car is right there and the luggage goes to room number eight. Did you hear me? Room number eight!” Lauren commanded as she pointed to the door and two men rushed past them. “Now you two, I know that you don’t get to see each other that much anymore but let me inform you that there will be absolutely no work talk this weekend. You got it?”

                Liza nodded as Kelsey replied, “Don’t worry Lauren. We will be on our best behavior, but I do need to talk to Liza for a minute. I swear its wedding related.”

                Lauren smiled as Kelsey took Liza’s hand and led her off to an empty part of the two story house. “How come I don’t believe you?” Lauren yelled after them before turning towards Maggie and Caitlin, “Why do I even try?”

                Maggie laughed as she put her arm around Lauren and said, “It’s okay. Now where’s the bar? Caitlin and I need a drink.”

As Lauren showed them where to go, Kelsey quickly closed the door to the room she was staying in and Liza couldn’t help but get flashbacks to the last time they left a party to talk privately. She tried to push that uneasiness aside as she asked, “What did you want to talk to me about?”

                “A couple things,” Kelsey started as she said down next to Liza on the bed, “First, I need you to promise me something.”

                “Sure anything.”

                Kelsey took a deep breath before she continued, “If this weekend gets to be too much, I need you to talk me through it. Lauren won’t be any help and I need someone who’s been through this before to tell me everything will be okay.”

                Liza smiled as she rubbed soothing circles on Kelsey’s back. Ever since Kelsey had found out about her real age, she couldn’t help but act motherly around her. She cared deeply for Kelsey and not only was she one of her closest friends, but Liza also thought of her as a second daughter. “Of course I can do that. Are you having doubts about the wedding? About Scott?”

                “No, Scott is wonderful and I couldn’t picture my life without him. I just want to have a plan ready in case I get anxious and have another panic attack.”

                “And I will be there to talk you through it if that happens, but I’m not cutting you out of your wedding dress. You’ll never forgive me if I do.”

                Kelsey laughed, “No that’s fine. I’m hoping things don’t get that bad. Now on to the other thing.”

                Kelsey got up and walked towards the closet as Liza asked, “Uh oh, should I be worried?”

                “Depends,” Kelsey started as she walked back towards Liza and tossed her manuscript down on the bed, “did you really think that I wouldn’t be able to figure out this was yours?”

                Liza took a deep breath, “Are you mad? I can only imagine how you felt when you read it. I want you to know that I never meant to write this, it just kind of happened.”

                “Relax Liza. It’s amazing and everyone at Empirical is very excited about it. I’m just wondering why you don’t want your name on it. Don’t you think it won’t have as much of a reach that way?”

                “I know that publishing anonymously or with a pen name is a big risk but there are still so many people who don’t know about what I did in order to get back into publishing. Caitlin is one of them and frankly I don’t want the whole world to know about how I had to lie to get ahead.” Kelsey nodded as Liza continued, “I don’t want this out there unless Millennial publishes it. I know that I can never make up for the way I left but I’m hoping that this will do. It can really expand the brand and reach a wide audience.”

                “I agree and so do Charles and Diana but they really want to meet the author, that’s why I’ve been sitting on this.”

                Liza took another deep breath as she replied, “I tried my best to describe how I ended up being a part of the millennial scene without bringing up work and the age thing but if it gets out that I wrote this my career is over.”

                “But I thought you were done lying. Doesn’t Jay know your real age?”

                Liza nodded, “He does but I’d probably still get blackballed. No one will want to work with me after that.”

                “True, but if we publish it you’ll still have to meet with an editor and come in for meetings once it’s time for roll out.”

                Liza looked down before she said, “Not if I sign away any rights that I have to the book. Millennial will have final say over everything and I just get to be happy knowing that my book is out there and may be helping to bridge the generational gap.”

                “You would really do that?” Kelsey wondered.

                “Yeah. Caitlin’s school is pretty much paid for and she just got hired at a clinic in Albany. She’s doing really well and so am I.”

                Kelsey nodded, “Okay, I won’t be able to move ahead on this until Scott and I get back from St. Bart’s but I’ll see if I can get Redmond to represent you. That way you’re still involved but can get away with having your agent meet with us for marketing and roll out.”

                “Thank you Kelsey. You have no idea how much this means to me.”

                Kelsey smiled, “No problem. But I need to know, do you not want your name on this because of your secret or because you’re afraid of how Charles will react?”

                Liza’s face went pale. She didn’t think Kelsey knew that he was the real reason behind why she had left. She hated lying to Kelsey but she couldn’t force herself to tell her former coworker that she was hopelessly in love with her married boss.  Or that she couldn’t stomach the idea of seeing him every day and knowing that they could never happen. “Why do you say that?”

                “He was your boss Liza. He thought that you were 26 and I’m sure he’d be disappointed to learn that you lied to him. Especially since he was the reason that you and Josh broke up.” Kelsey explained.

                Liza nodded, “Exactly. I don’t think that I could sit there and listen to how he is going to make my memoir about mascaraing as a millennial into a best seller. It just wouldn’t be fair for him to find out that way.”

                Kelsey just nodded instead of telling Liza the truth. That she knew Liza was only saying what she thought Kelsey wanted to hear and that she didn’t think Liza was worried about Charles finding out. Instead, Liza was more worried about Charles not looking at her with that twinkle in his eye. Something that Kelsey was sure both of them thought no one had ever noticed but Kelsey did. She never thought anything of it until Liza left Empirical and—consequently—do did the twinkle. “Are you going to be okay seeing him at the wedding?”

                “What?” Liza asked before realizing what Kelsey was asking her, “Oh yeah. I’ll be fine. There’s going to be so much going on, I won’t have time to think about anything that isn’t wedding related.”

                “Okay. Speaking of weddings, we better get back to the party otherwise Lauren is going to have our heads on a spike.”

                “Yes she definitely will,” Liza added, “besides I feel like I have to reintroduce myself to the rest of the bridesmaids, I haven’t seen them since the bachelorette party.”

                “And you haven’t seen Scott for about twice as long. He thinks you’re a ghost,” Kelsey replied.

                “Hey that isn’t my fault,” Liza said as they made their way back to the party, “You’re stockbroker fiancé was the one who was always stuck at the office the last few times we hung out.”

                Kelsey just laughed as they reentered the living room, “Its fine. You have tonight and tomorrow to make up for it. Now I better go find Lauren before she thinks that I made you help me escape through the window.”

                Liza smiled as Kelsey made her way through the crowded living room in search of her crazy maid-of-honor. “Hey stranger,” she heard Josh say behind her.

                She smiled and said, “Hey yourself. How are you?”

                “Good,” he started as he took a small plastic bag out of his pocket, “Actually, I’m really good.”

                Liza shook her head, _classic Josh,_ she thought to herself. “Just do me a favor and don’t share that with Caitlin. I’d like to believe that my daughter has never been high and never will be.”

                “Okay,” Josh laughed as he leaned closer to her, “Can I ask you a personal question?” Liza nodded as Josh continued, “Do you like Stock? Or do you think we might have another Thad situation on our hands?”

                “Scott,” Liza corrected him, “is a great guy. I like him a lot and he’s great for Kelsey. He loves her for her and not for how she could help his career. We have nothing to worry about, she’s in good hands.”

                Josh nodded, “Did I just call him stock? That’s funny.”

                “Because Scott works in stocks?” Liza wondered.

                “Yeah, I think I’m going to call him that from now on!”

                Liza couldn’t help but laugh, how high was he? “Oh I’m sure Kelsey would love that. I think you should drink some water or maybe get something to eat.”

                Josh smiled at her and Liza couldn’t help but think about all the times she saw that same exact smile while they were dating. It always made her feel special, “You’re such a mom you know that?”

“Fine. Do whatever you want but your head is definitively going to hurt in the morning.”

                A waiter passed them and Josh took two shots of the tray before he said, “Not if I do a shot right now with my favorite 40 something.”

                Liza smiled as she took the other shot from him, “To Kelsey, may her and Scott have a long and successful marriage.”

                “Here, here,” Josh said. They both slammed back their shots and then Josh added, “It was nice to see you again Liza.”

                “You too,” she replied as Josh left her to rejoin the party. Her smile widened as he did. Maybe this weekend wouldn’t be as bad as she thought.

                “Oh Liza, there you are,” Lauren said as she took her by the arm, “Tonight is for the bridal party to get better acquainted. So no more talking to Josh, you’ve known him for years.” Lauren led her around the house until she found a small group of people, “Here we go. Liza, this is Mallory and Josephine, they are some of the other bridesmaids. And this is Matthew, he’s Scott’s work mentor and who you’ll be walking down the aisle with. Now socialize, this is a party after all. I better see you having fun!”

                Lauren grabbed a glass of champagne off of a waiter’s tray and handed it to her before disappearing again. Probably making sure that everyone was having a great time. Lauren not only knew how to throw a party, she also knew how to make sure they were successful ones that people would talk about for years to come. Liza quickly introduced herself to Mallory and Josephine. As they talked and gossiped, she learned that Mallory was Scott’s sister and that Josephine had gone to college with Kelsey. Not only that, but she was also responsible for Kelsey and Scott getting together. Since she was the one who made Kelsey go with her to the charity event that just so happened to be thrown by Scott’s parents. The happy couple had been inseparable ever since. 

                Liza was also surprised to learn that Matthew went to Dartmouth and graduated a few years before she did. She also couldn’t help but wonder if Kelsey chose for her to walk down the aisle with him because they were close in age and also happened to be single. They got along well and they even figured out what they were going to do during the grand march but that was as far as it went. Matthew excused himself to talk to a few of the other bridesmaids and Liza immediately felt relieved. The last thing she needed was for Kelsey to try and set her up, it didn’t work out too well the last time Kelsey had gotten involved in her love life anyway.

                Liza scanned the room and when she didn’t see Lauren anywhere in sight, she took advantage of the opportunity to try to find Caitlin and Maggie. She found them sitting on a couch in the corner and she quickly made her way over to them. “Hey, I only have a few minutes before Lauren finds me. How are you guys doing? You’re not bored are you?”

                “No,” Caitlin answered, “This is really fun and there are a lot of cute guys in the wedding!”

                Liza laughed as Maggie added, “And lots of cute girls. They’re probably all straight though.”

                “You know if you guys want to, you can go to the room. I’m sure Lauren won’t mind. I’ll try to sneak up in a little bit,” Liza started.

                “You mean you don’t want to keep talking to that guy?” Caitlin wondered, “He’s really hot!”

                “Yeah and I think he’s like super rich,” Josh added as he joined them. “You should totally go for it.”

                Liza laughed, “You’re still high aren’t you?”

                Josh shrugged, “Maybe, but since you did such a good job setting me up with Claire, I thought that I should return the favor.”

                “Wait isn’t Claire the Irish bartender Josh almost married?” Caitlin asked.

                Liza nodded as she turned to Josh and said, “You don’t have to do that. As I’ve been telling these two,” she pointed at her daughter and best friend, “I’m fine just focusing on work. Besides getting set up at a wedding never leads anywhere.”

                “Mom,” Caitlin added, “You seriously don’t believe that do you? They have a whole month on Hallmark dedicated to wedding romances and I only know that because that used to be your favorite month to watch.”

                Josh looked at Liza shocked while Maggie added, “She’s got you there. You even made me sit through a few of those cheesy movies.”

                Liza rolled her eyes as she said, “Yeah well things have changed and I’m happy with how my life is right now. You got that?” They all nodded and then Liza continued, “Good. Now I better get back before Lauren yells at me again.”

                As Liza walked away from them, Josh turned towards Maggie and asked, “Is she serious?”

                Maggie nodded, “I’m afraid so. She threw herself into work as a way to distract herself and now she’s in so deep that I don’t think she knows how to get out.”

                “She isn’t still hung up on him, is she?” Josh wondered.

                Caitlin looked at both of them in confusion, “Who are we talking about?”

                “Someone you’re mom used to work with sweetie and I’m pretty sure she is,” Maggie answered. The three of them quickly looked at each other and then looked at Liza, who was now talking to Lauren and a few other party quests. Although Liza was smiling, they couldn’t help but wonder if it was all an act.

                “Is she actually happy Maggie?” Caitlin wondered, “Or is she just saying that to get us to back off?”

                “I don’t know,” Maggie said as she pulled Caitlin into a side hug, “I have no idea.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you liked it! Please leave a review and tell me what you thought!

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you liked it! Feel free to leave a review and tell me what you thought!


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